Wednesday, 30 April 2025

South American President Claims Trump Administration Revoked His Visa, Appears To Give President Trump Nickname


Colombian President Gustavo Petro claims the United States revoked his visa.

According to reports, Petro appeared to mock President Trump by referring to him as “Donald Duck.”

“I can’t go [to the US] anymore because I believe they took away my visa,” Petro said, according to The Independent.

“I didn’t really need a visa, but anyway, I’ve already seen Donald Duck several times, so I’ll go see other things,” he added.

Per The Independent:

While it was not immediately clear whether the Colombian president was zinging his U.S. counterpart or the Walt Disney character, Trump has been mocked as “Donald Duck” before, notably by his sometime ally Chris Christie. In 2023 the former New Jersey governor dubbed Trump “Donald Duck” for refusing to take part in debates with his challengers for the Republican presidential nomination.

Petro is not thought to have met Trump, although he visited the White House in 2023 to meet then-President Joe Biden.

A State Department spokesperson declined to comment to The Independent on Tuesday, citing the confidentiality of visa records. An official with the US Embassy in Bogotá told a local news service that “no formal notification of visa revocation” had been issued.

But the agency threatened escalation with Petro’s government in January, when the US halted new visa applications for Colombian nationals. Applicants were handed letters informing them that their appointments at the embassy were canceled “due to the Colombian government’s refusal to accept repatriation flights of Colombian nationals”, according to the Associated Press.

During the dispute, the Colombian president balked over the usage of US military AC-130s for the transportation of Colombians, who he argued were being treated like criminals without being convicted of violating the law.

From the New York Post:

Trump threatened visa sanctions, enhanced inspections for travelers and emergency tariffs of up to 50% on Colombia in January he clashed with Petro over migrant deportations.

Petro, a former leftist guerrilla, initially refused deported Colombian migrants entry, bemoaning that the Trump administration was treating them like “criminals.”

The Colombian president quickly reversed course after Trump’s threat and even offered the US use of his presidential plane to transfer the migrants back to Colombia.

“Today’s events make clear to the world that America is respected again,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said of the showdown at the time.


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